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{{short description|American animation studio}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Terrytoons, Inc.
| logo = Terrytoons_logo_1955.svg
| logo_size = 130px
| logo_caption = Logo used in 1956
| founders = [[Paul Terry (cartoonist)|Paul Terry]]<br>[[Frank Moser (artist)|Frank Moser]]<br>Joseph Coffman
| founded = {{start date and age|1929}}
| defunct = {{end date and age|1972|12|29}}<ref name=departure>{{Cite news |title=Terrytoons' departure ends an era |url=https://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspapers%252023%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201973%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201973%2520%2528102%2529.pdf%23xml%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dfffffffff612abce%26DocId%3D5562162%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520S%26HitCount%3D6%26hits%3D475%2B476%2B539%2B53a%2B5d5%2B5d6%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&uri=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspapers%252023%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201973%2FTarrytown%2520Ny%2520Daily%2520News%25201973%2520%2528102%2529.pdf&xml=https%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dfffffffff612abce%26DocId%3D5562162%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cDISK%2520S%26HitCount%3D6%26hits%3D475%2B476%2B539%2B53a%2B5d5%2B5d6%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false |last=Tracy |first=Dick |date=1973-01-04 |access-date=2024-10-03 |work=Tarrytown Daily News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Closing of The Terrytoon Studio {{!}} |url=https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/the-closing-of-the-terrytoon-studio/ |website=cartoonresearch.com |access-date=2 June 2025}}</ref>
| predecessor = [[The Van Beuren Corporation|Van Beuren Studios]]
| successors = Studio:<br>[[CBS Eye Animation Productions]]<br>Library:<br>[[Paramount Pictures]]
| fate = Closed
| location_country = * 1929–1930, [[Long Island, New York]], United States<ref name="CartoonResearch">{{cite web|url= https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/terrytoons-club-sandwich-1931/|title=Terrytoon's "Club Sandwich" (1931)|work= Cartoon Research|publisher=[[Jerry Beck]] |access-date=May 16, 2019 |df= mdy-all}}</ref> 
* August 1930–1932, [[Bronx, New York]], United States<ref name="CartoonResearch" /> 
* 1932–1935, [[Manhattan]], [[New York City|New York]], United States<ref name="CartoonResearch" /> 
* 1935–1949, [[271 North Avenue|"K" Building]], [[New Rochelle, New York]], United States
* 1949–1972, [[New Rochelle, New York]], United States
| key_people = 
| industry = [[Animation]]
| products = Theatrical [[Animation|animated]] [[short film]]s
| distributor = 
| revenue = 
| parent = [[Viacom (1952–2005)|Viacom]] (1956–1972)
| homepage = 
}}
'''Terrytoons, Inc.''' was an American [[animation studio]] headquartered in [[New Rochelle, New York]], which was active from 1929 until its closure on December 29, 1972 (and returned between 1987 and 1996 for television in-name only). Founded by [[Paul Terry (cartoonist)|Paul Terry]], [[Frank Moser (artist)|Frank Moser]], and Joseph Coffman, it operated out of the [[271 North Avenue|"K" Building]] in downtown New Rochelle. The studio created many cartoon characters including [[Fanny Zilch]], [[Mighty Mouse]], [[Heckle and Jeckle]], [[Gandy Goose]], Sourpuss, [[Dinky Duck]], Little Roquefort, the Terry Bears, Dimwit, and [[Luno the White Stallion|Luno]]; Terry's pre-existing character [[Farmer Al Falfa]] was also featured often in the series.

The "New Terrytoons" period of the late 1950s through the mid-1960s produced new characters such as [[Clint Clobber]], [[Tom Terrific]], [[Deputy Dawg]], [[Hector Heathcote]], [[Hashimoto-san]], Sidney the Elephant, Possible Possum, James Hound, [[Astronut]], [[Sad Cat]], [[The Mighty Heroes]], and Sally Sargent. Also during that time, [[Ralph Bakshi]] got his start as an animator, and eventually as a director, at Terrytoons.<ref name=maltin87>{{cite book |last=Maltin |first=Leonard |author-link=Leonard Maltin |date=1987 |title=Of Mice and Magic: A history of American animated cartoons |edition=Rev. |place=New York |publisher=New American Library |isbn=0452259932 }}</ref>

Terrytoons shorts were originally released to theaters by [[20th Century Fox]] from 1935 until 1973. After Terry had retired, Terrytoons was sold to [[CBS]], which would later purchase the entire library. [[Paramount Pictures]] would eventually take theatrical rights ownership of the Terrytoons library in 1994 (which was then already purchased by [[Viacom (1952–2005)|Viacom]]), and would purchase CBS in 2000. As of 2019, Paramount Pictures has owned the rights to the studio and its library after the [[2019 merger of CBS and Viacom|re-merger]] of [[CBS Corporation]] and [[Viacom (2005–2019)|Viacom]].

== History ==
=== Pre-Terrytoons era ===
[[Image: River of Doubt.jpg|thumb|Farmer Al Falfa in "River of Doubt" (1927)]]
Terry first worked for [[Bray Productions|Bray Studios]] in 1916, where he created the [[Farmer Al Falfa]] series. He would then make a Farmer Al Falfa short for [[Edison Studios|Edison Pictures]], called "Farmer Al Falfa's Wayward Pup" (1917), and some later cartoons were made for [[Paramount Pictures]].

Around 1921, Terry founded the Fables animation studio, named for its ''[[Aesop's Film Fables]]'' series, in conjunction with the studio of [[Amedee J. Van Beuren]]. Fables churned out a Fable cartoon every week for eight years in the 1920s.

In 1928, Van Beuren, anxious to compete with the new phenomenon of [[talking picture]]s, released Terry's ''[[Dinner Time (cartoon)|Dinner Time]]'' (released October 1928). Van Beuren then urged Terry to start producing actual sound films, instead of post-synchronizing the cartoons. Terry refused, and Van Beuren fired him in 1929. Almost immediately, Terry and much of his staff started up the Terrytoons studio near his former studio. One staff member during that time was [[Art Babbitt]], who went on to become a well-known Disney animator.

=== Peak era ===
[[File:"Toyland" produced by Frank Moser and Paul Terry-Toons - The Film Daily, Jul-Dec 1932 (page 858 crop).jpg|thumb|left|"Toyland" produced by Frank Moser and Paul Terry-Toons ad from ''The Film Daily'', 1932]]
Through much of its history, the studio was considered one of the lowest-quality houses in the field, to the point where Paul Terry noted, "Let Walt Disney be the [[Tiffany & Co.|Tiffany's]] of the business. I want to be the [[F. W. Woolworth Company|Woolworth's]]!"<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hamonic |first1=W. Gerald |title=Terrytoons: The Story of Paul Terry and His Classic Cartoon Factory |date=2018 |publisher=John Libbey Publishing Ltd |isbn=978-0861967292 |pages=168}}</ref>  Terry's studio had the lowest budgets and was among the slowest to adapt to new technologies such as [[Sound film|sound]] (in about 1930) and [[Technicolor]] (in 1938). While its graphic style remained remarkably static for decades, it actually followed the sound cartoon trend of the late 1920s and early 1930s very quickly. Background music was entrusted to one man, Philip Scheib, and Terry's refusal to pay royalties for popular songs forced Scheib to compose his own scores.

Paul Terry took pride in producing a new cartoon every other week, regardless of the quality of the films. <!--This is all caused by the move to [[Manhattan, New York|Manhattan]], when a decline and viewers started to notice Paul Terry's quality on the Terrytoons drop.--> Until 1957, screen credits were very sparse, listing only the writer (until 1950, solely John Foster; then Tom Morrison thereafter), director (Terry's three main directors were [[Connie Rasinski]], Eddie Donnelly, and Mannie Davis), and musician (musical director Philip A. Scheib).
[[File:"AHOY, MATES!" Paul Terrytoons ad - The Film Daily, Jan-Jun 1932 (page 352 crop).jpg|thumb|Paul Terry-toons ad in ''[[The Film Daily]]'', 1932]]
Terrytoons' first distributor was [[Educational Pictures]], specialists in short-subject comedies and novelties. Audio-Cinema in the early 1930s backed the production of Terrytoons, and distributed the Educational library internationally, except in the United Kingdom and Ireland where the library was distributed by Educational and [[Gaumont-British]] in partnership with the [[Ideal Film Company]].

The [[Fox Film]] company then released Educational shorts to theaters in the 1930s, giving the Terry cartoons wide exposure. Following the merger between Fox Film and [[Twentieth Century Pictures|20th Century]], the newly formed [[20th Century Studios|20th Century Fox]] withdrew its support from Educational Pictures, and the company both backed and distributed Terrytoons. Farmer Al Falfa was Terry's most familiar character in the 1930s; Kiko the Kangaroo was spun off the Farmer Al Falfa series. Most of the other cartoons featured stock generic animal characters and designs, one of which was a scruffy dog with a black patch around one eye; Terry ultimately built a series around this character, now known as Puddy the Pup.

Paul Terry may have realized that Educational was in financial trouble because he found another lucrative outlet for his product. In 1938, he arranged to release his older cartoons through home-movie distributor [[Castle Films]]. Educational went out of business within the year, but 20th Century Fox continued to release Terrytoons to theaters for the next two decades. With a new emphasis on "star" characters, Terrytoons featured the adventures of Super Mouse (later renamed [[Mighty Mouse|''Mighty Mouse'']]), the talking magpies [[Heckle and Jeckle|''Heckle and Jeckle'']], the silly and flamboyant [[Gandy Goose|''Gandy Goose'']] and his partner ''Sourpuss'', the unusually unlucky [[Dinky Duck|''Dinky Duck'']], the mischievous mouse ''Little Roquefort'', and ''The Terry Bears''.

Despite the artistic drawbacks imposed by Terry's inflexible business policies, Terrytoons was nominated three times for the [[Academy Award for Animated Short Film]] under his tenure: ''All Out for V'' in 1942, ''My Boy, Johnny'' in 1944, and ''[[Mighty Mouse in Gypsy Life]]'' in 1945.

=== Changing hands ===
The studio was sold outright by the retiring Paul Terry to [[CBS]] in 1955, but 20th Century Fox continued distribution. The deal closed the following year in 1956, and it became a division of the [[Viacom (1952–2006)|CBS Films]] subsidiary.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Chapter 15: The Terry-fying Challenge|url=https://www.awn.com/genedeitch/chapter-fifteen-the-terry-fying-challenge|access-date=April 23, 2021|website=Animation World Network|language=en}}</ref> Later, in 1957 CBS put it under the management of [[UPA (animation studio)|UPA]] alumnus [[Gene Deitch]], who had to work with even lower budgets.

Deitch significantly shifted the studio's direction away from its roots and instead focused on a style more reminiscent to UPA's cartoons. His most notable works at the studio were the ''[[Tom Terrific]]'' cartoon segments for the ''[[Captain Kangaroo]]'' television show. He also discontinued the ''Mighty Mouse'' and ''Heckle and Jeckle'' cartoons to instead put focus a number of new characters, such as ''Sidney the Elephant'',<ref>[http://www.toonopedia.com/sidney.htm Sidney the Elephant] at [[Don Markstein's Toonopedia]]. [https://archive.today/20130624033057/http://www.toonopedia.com/sidney.htm Archived] from the original on January 20, 2015.</ref> ''Gaston Le Crayon'',<ref>[http://www.toonopedia.com/lecrayon.htm Gaston Le Crayon] at [[Don Markstein's Toonopedia]]. [https://archive.today/20130624033059/http://www.toonopedia.com/lecrayon.htm Archived] from the original on April 16, 2012.</ref> ''John Doormat'',{{citation needed|date=January 2015}} and [[Clint Clobber|''Clint Clobber'']].<ref>[http://www.toonopedia.com/clobber.htm Clint Clobber] at [[Don Markstein's Toonopedia]]. [https://archive.today/20130624033050/http://www.toonopedia.com/clobber.htm Archived] from the original on April 16, 2012.</ref> One of Deitch's ''Sidney'' cartoons, ''Sidney's Family Tree'', would be nominated for an Academy award in 1958.

Before Deitch was fired in 1959, Bill Weiss took complete control of the studio. Under his supervision, ''Heckle and Jeckle'' and ''Mighty Mouse'' went back into production. Besides the three core directors of the Terry era who were still involved as animators and directors, two [[Famous Studios]] stalwarts joined the crew, [[Dave Tendlar]] and [[Martin Taras]]. Other new theatrical cartoon series included ''Hector Heathcote'', ''Luno'' and ''Hashimoto San''. The studio also began producing the ''[[Deputy Dawg]]'' series for television in 1959. Another television production for the ''Captain Kangaroo'' show was ''The Adventures of Lariat Sam'', which was written in part by [[Gene Wood]], who would later become the announcer for several TV gameshows including ''[[Family Feud]]''.

Phil Scheib continued as the studio's musical director through the mid-1960s when he was replaced by Jim Timmens and Elliott Lawrence.

The best-known talent at Terrytoons in the 1960s was animator/director/producer [[Ralph Bakshi]]. Bakshi started his career in Terrytoons in the 1950s as an opaquer,<ref name=maltin87 /> but would climb the ranks and eventually helmed the ''[[Mighty Heroes]]'' series, as well as a series of cartoons starring his creation [[Sad Cat|''Sad Cat'']]. Bakshi left Terrytoons in 1967 for [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]]'s [[Famous Studios|own cartoon studio]], which closed its cartoon unit later that year. He would later go on to produce ''[[Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures]]'' for television in 1987, which was also produced by future ''[[The Ren & Stimpy Show|Ren & Stimpy]]'' creator [[John Kricfalusi]].

=== Closure ===
After Bakshi's departure, the studio petered out, and finally closed in 1973. As a result of the [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]] banning TV networks from owning cable television and [[Broadcast syndication|syndication]] of television programs, [[CBS Corporation|CBS]] created [[Viacom (1952–2005)|Viacom Enterprises]] to handle all network programs beyond TV production and network broadcasting.

On July 4, 1971, Viacom Enterprises spun off from CBS; neither Viacom Enterprises nor CBS had any interest in Terrytoons. The Terrytoons film library was still regularly re-released to theaters by Fox. The studio's final short was an unsold TV pilot called ''Sally Sargent'', about a 16-year-old girl who is a secret agent. Soon after ''Sally Sargent'' was completed, Viacom International ended their relationship with Fox and re-releases ceased. Terrytoons’ existence soon came to an end.

Art Bartsch, who kept the studio running after Bakshi left, would soon die along with Connie Rasinski, and [[Bob Kuwahara]], reducing the studio to a ghost studio with executive producer Bill Weiss and story supervisor Tom Morrison; Viacom kept the studio open until 1972. By October 1972, Viacom International announced that Terrytoons would leave New Rochelle and relocate to Viacom International's office in New York City. By December 29, Viacom sold the now abandoned New Rochelle studio, and the company's fate was forever sealed.

=== Post-history ===
Weiss continued Terrytoons production from his New York City office with the 1970s Terrytoons cartoons (especially ''Mighty Mouse'' and ''Deputy Dawg'') being syndicated to many local TV markets, and they were a staple of after-school and Saturday-morning cartoon shows for over three decades, from the 1950s through the 1980s, until the television rights to the library were acquired by [[USA Network]] in 1989. However, any new cartoons of the studio's stars came from other studios.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/terrytoons-the-viacom-years/|title=Terrytoons – The Viacom Years|work= Cartoon Research |publisher=[[Jerry Beck]] |access-date=May 16, 2019 }}</ref>

In the late 1970s, [[Filmation|Filmation Associates]] licensed the rights to make the new ''Mighty Mouse'' and ''Heckle & Jeckle'' series from Viacom International. The series was ''[[The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse and Heckle & Jeckle]]'' and aired from 1979 to 1980 on CBS.

Bakshi would later produce ''[[Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures]]'' in 1987, which lasted for two seasons. Bakshi and his friend [[John Kricfalusi]] inspired the staff to try to get as much [[Jim Tyer]]-style drawing in the show as possible. Tyer, a stand-out Terry animator of the original cartoons with a unique style, became a strong influence on the artists of the Bakshi series, such as now recognizable writers, artists and animators—[[Bruce Timm]], [[Doug Moench]], [[Andrew Stanton]], [[Rich Moore]], [[Lynne Naylor]], [[Jim Reardon]], [[Tom Minton]], and [[Bob Jaques]].

Many of the characters (such as Mighty Mouse, Heckle and Jeckle, Dinky Duck, Deputy Dawg, and others) were slated to make cameos in the 1988 film ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]'', but only Oscar the Timid Pig, Looey Lion, and a character resembling Gandy Goose appeared. They can all be seen during the film's finale. They were also planned to appear in the deleted scene of Marvin Acme's funeral. In 1994, Fox would sell its Terrytoons theatrical distribution to Paramount, which was then purchased by Viacom that same year, and would go on to purchase CBS six years later in 2000.

Through the years that have followed since the last Terrytoons TV series material in 1988, the rights have been scattered as a result of prior rights issues and the corporate changes involving [[Viacom (2005–2019)|Viacom]] and CBS, especially in 2005. Since [[CBS Corporation]] [[2019 merger of CBS and Viacom|re-merged]] with Viacom to form [[ViacomCBS]] ([[Paramount Skydance|Paramount Skydance Corporation]] as of August 2025), reuniting CBS with Paramount, on December 4, 2019, and [[CBS Films]] was folded into [[CBS Entertainment Group]] after releasing ''[[Jexi]]'' on the same day, Paramount Pictures now owns the theatrical distribution on behalf of [[Paramount Animation]] and CBS Entertainment Group, while [[CBS Media Ventures]] (formed in 2006) owns the television distribution on behalf of [[CBS Eye Animation Productions]] to the Terrytoons film library. However, some Terrytoons shorts are believed to be in the [[public domain]] and have either been issued on low-budget [[VHS]] tapes and [[DVD]]s or have been uploaded on sites such as [[Internet Archive]]. On January 5, 2010, the first official release of any Terrytoons material by [[CBS Home Entertainment|CBS DVD]] was issued in the form of the complete series of ''Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures''.

In 1999, animation historian [[Jerry Beck]] attempted to revive the Terrytoons characters as part of a pilot for ''[[Nickelodeon]]'' called ''Curbside''. ''Curbside'' would have been a parody of late-night talk shows with Heckle and Jeckle serving as hosts of the show, along with their assistant Dinky Duck, and would have featured new cartoons featuring Terrytoon characters like Deputy Dawg, Sidney the Elephant, and Mighty Mouse. ''Curbside'' features talented voices of [[Toby Huss]] and [[Bobcat Goldthwait]] as Heckle & Jeckle, [[Dee Bradley Baker]] as Dinky Duck, Mighty Mouse and Sidney the Elephant, [[Billy West]] as Deputy Dawg, [[Haley Joel Osment]] as Tom Terrific, and additional voices of Baker, West, [[Charlie Adler]], and [[Rob Paulsen]]. Beck would leave the project early on after Nick secured the rights to the characters, and the pilot was never picked up, making it the only Terrytoons show that was never officially released.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bcdb.com/cartoon/101602-Curbside|title=Curbside (Nickelodeon)|first=The Big Cartoon|last=DataBase|website=Big Cartoon DataBase (BCDB)|access-date=February 1, 2018}}{{dead link|date=January 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Beck would later express dissatisfaction with the pilot due to its misunderstanding of Terry's characters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Let’s Talk Terrytoons: Why We Don’t See Them Anymore {{!}} |url=https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/lets-talk-terrytoons-why-we-dont-see-them-anymore/ |access-date=2025-11-18 |website=cartoonresearch.com}}</ref>

Between 2001 and 2002, the Terrytoons characters returned to television in original commercials for Brazilian blue cheese (for what is now America's Dairy Farmers) and fine wine. One such infamous commercial was the Mighty Mouse ad (entitled "Dining With Cheese") dining calmly on cheese in a restaurant, utterly unconcerned with a scene of chaos and terror visibly unfolding in the street outside. That said commercial was then pulled from airing following the [[September 11 attacks|September 11th attacks]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Power of Cheese, Mighty Mouse|url=http://adland.tv/commercials/cheese-mighty-mouse-2001-030-usa|publisher=America's Dairy Farmers|access-date=May 11, 2012|year=2001}}</ref>

In 2004, a supposed live-action/animated hybrid Mighty Mouse [[Mighty Mouse#Feature film adaptation|film adaptation]] was announced for [[Nickelodeon Movies]] and Paramount Pictures with [[Steve Oedekerk]] of [[Steve Oedekerk#Omation Animation Studio|Omation Animation Studio]] to produce and direct, but was cancelled and has been in [[development hell]] since then.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mighty Mouse on again at Paramount|url=http://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/mighty-mouse-on-again-at-paramount.html|publisher=[[Cartoon Brew]]|access-date=May 11, 2012|first=Jerry|last=Beck|date=April 16, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721220306/http://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/mighty-mouse-on-again-at-paramount.html|archive-date=July 21, 2011}}</ref> However, development later revived in April 2019 for Paramount Animation with Jon and Erich Hoeber to write the screenplay and both [[Karen Rosenfelt]] and [[Robert W. Cort]] to produce.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2019/04/mighty-mouse-movie-paramount-animation-jon-hoeber-erich-hoeber-writing-meg-1202592891/ Here They Come, To Save The Day: Jon & Erich Hoeber To Script ‘Mighty Mouse’ For Paramount Animation]</ref> It was later announced that in November 2024, Paramount Animation was associated with [[Maximum Effort]], with its co-founder [[Ryan Reynolds]] as a producer and [[Matt Lieberman]] as a writer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2024/film/news/ryan-reynolds-free-guy-writer-matt-lieberman-mighty-mouse-movie-1236221984/|last=Lang|first=Brent|title=Ryan Reynolds' Maximum Effort, 'Free Guy' Writer Matt Lieberman Team With Paramount Animation for 'Mighty Mouse' Movie (EXCLUSIVE)|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=November 25, 2024|access-date=November 25, 2024}}</ref>

In 2025, It was announced that [[MeTV Toons]] will air all the classic Terrytoons cartoons starting on November 2, making their return to TV in decades.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://animationscoop.com/terrytoons-metv-toons/|last=Lang|first=Brent|title=MeTV Toons Brings Back the Paul Terry and Ralph Bakshi “Mighty Mouse” Cartoons Starting Nov. 2nd|website=[[Animation Scoop]]|date=October 15, 2025|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref>

== Comic books ==
[[Image:Terry-Toons61.jpg|thumb|''Terry-Toons Comics'' #61 (Oct. 1947). Cover artist unknown.]]
Among the many licensed Terrytoons products are comic books, mainly published throughout the 1940s and 1950s. The company's characters — including Mighty Mouse, Heckle and Jeckle, Dinky Duck, Gandy Goose, and Little Roquefort — were initially licensed to Timely, a predecessor of [[Marvel Comics]], in 1942.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mitchell |first1=Kurt |last2=Thomas |first2=Roy |title=American Comic Book Chronicles: 1940–1944 |date=2019 |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |isbn=978-1605490892 |page=175}}</ref> [[St. John Publications]] took over the license from 1947 to 1956, [[Pines Comics]] published Terrytoons comics from 1956 to 1959, [[Dell Comics]] made an attempt from 1959 to 1962 (and again later from 1966 to 1967), and finally [[Western Publishing]] published Mighty Mouse comics from 1962 all the way up to 1980.

The lead title, ''Terry-Toons Comics'', was published by Timely from Oct. 1942–Aug. 1947.<ref>[https://www.comics.org/series/301/ "Terry-Toons Comics"], Grand Comics Database. Accessed May 25, 2018.</ref> With issue #60 (Sept. 1947), publication of the title was taken over by St. John Publications, which published another 27 issues until issue #86 (May 1951).<ref>[https://www.comics.org/series/12489/ "Terry-Toons Comics"], Grand Comics Database. Accessed May 25, 2018.</ref> The series continued in 1951 (with duplicate issues #85–86) as ''Paul Terry's Comics'', publishing another 41 issues until May 1955, when it was canceled with issue #125.<ref>[https://www.comics.org/series/12488/ "Paul Terry's Comics,"] Grand Comics Database. Accessed May 25, 2018.</ref>

Timely launched the Mighty Mouse series in 1946. The first St. John Terrytoons comic was ''Mighty Mouse'' #5 (Aug. 1947), its numbering also taken over from the Timely run. That series eventually ran 71 issues with St. John, moving to Pines for 16 issues from Apr. 1956 to Aug. 1959, to Dell for 12 issues from Oct./Dec. 1959–July/Sept. 1962, and Western for 17 issues from Oct. 1962 to Jan. 1980 (with a hiatus from Sept. 1965 to Mar. 1979), finally ending with issue #172.

St. John's Terrytoons comics include the field's first [[Stereoscopy|3-D]] comic book, ''Three Dimension Comics'' #1 (Sept. 1953 oversize format, Oct. 1953 standard-size reprint), featuring Mighty Mouse.<ref>{{cite web| author-link=Ray Zone| last=Zone| first=Ray| url=http://www.ray3dzone.com/50ind.html| title=1950s 3-D Comic Book Checklist| publisher=Ray3DZone.com| date=n.d.| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211164013/http://ray3dzone.com/50ind.html| archive-date=February 11, 2009| url-status=dead}}</ref> According to [[Joe Kubert]], co-creator with the brothers [[Norman Maurer]] and Leonard Maurer, it sold an exceptional 1.2 million copies at 25 cents apiece<ref>Joe Kubert interview, [http://www.universohq.com/Quadrinhos/interview_kubert01.cfm "A Myth in the World of Comics"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124033248/http://www.universohq.com/quadrinhos/interview_kubert01.cfm |date=November 24, 2010 }}, UniversoHQ.com, n.d. [https://web.archive.org/web/20101124033248/http://www.universohq.com/quadrinhos/interview_kubert01.cfm WebCitation archive].</ref> at a time when comics cost a dime.

Dell Comics published eight issues of a ''New Terrytoons'' title from June/Aug. 1960 to March/May 1962.

=== Terrytoons comic book titles ===
* ''Adventures of Mighty Mouse'' (18 issues, November 1951 – May 1955) — St. John
* ''Dinky Duck'' (19 issues, November 1951 – Summer 1958) — launched by St. John, continued by Pines
* ''Gandy Goose'' (4 issues, March 1953 – November 1953) – St. John
* ''Heckle and Jeckle'' (32 issues, October 1951 – June 1959) — launched by St. John, continued by Pines
* ''Heckle and Jeckle'' (4 issues, November 1962 – August 1963) — Western Publishing
* ''Heckle and Jeckle'' (3 issues, May 1966 – 1967) — Dell
* ''Little Roquefort Comics'' (10 issues, June 1952 – Summer 1958) — launched by St. John, continued by Pines
* ''Mighty Mouse / Paul Terry's Mighty Mouse Comics'' (172 issues, Fall 1946 – January 1980) — launched by Timely; continued by St. John, Pines, Dell, and Western
* ''Mighty Mouse Album'' (3 issues, October – December 1952) — St. John
* ''New Terrytoons'' (8 issues, June/August 1960 – March/May 1962) — Dell
* ''Terry Bears Comics / Terrytoons, the Terry Bears'' (4 issues, June 1952 – Summer 1958) — launched by St. John, continued by Pines
* ''Terry-Toons Comics'' / ''Paul Terry's Comics'' (125 issues, Oct. 1942 – May 1955) — launched by Timely Comics, continued by St. John
* ''TerryToons Comics'' (9 issues, June 1952 – November 1953) — St. John; separate from ''Terry-Toons Comics'' / ''Paul Terry's Comics''

== Filmography ==
: ''See [[List of Terrytoons animated shorts]] for complete filmography''

=== Theatrical short film series ===
{{colbegin}}
* ''Aesop's Fables'' (1945–1960)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/18/mode/2up |pages=18–20}}</ref>
* ''[[Astronut]]'' (1964–1971)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/50/mode/2up |pages=51–52}}</ref>
* ''Clint Clobber'' (1957–1959)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/66/mode/2up |page=66}}</ref>
* ''[[Deputy Dawg]]'' (1960–1964)
* ''Dimwit'' (1953–1957)<ref name="Checkmark Books">{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/73/mode/2up |page=73}}</ref>
* ''Dingbat'' (1950)<ref name="Checkmark Books"/>
* ''[[Dinky Duck]]'' (1939–1957)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/72/mode/2up |page=73}}</ref>
* ''Duckwood'' (1964)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/76/mode/2up |page=77}}</ref>
* ''[[Fanny Zilch]]'' (1933-1938)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/78/mode/2up |page=79}}</ref>
* ''[[Farmer Al Falfa]]'' (1915–1956)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/78/mode/2up |pages=79–80}}</ref>
* ''Foofle'' (1959–1960)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/82/mode/2up |page=82}}</ref>
* ''[[Gandy Goose]]'' (1938–1955)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/82/mode/2up |pages=83–84}}</ref>
* ''Gaston Le Crayon'' (1957–1959)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/84/mode/2up |page=84}}</ref>
* ''Good Deed Daily'' (1955–1956)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/XXX/mode/2up }}</ref>
* ''Half Pint'' (1951)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/88/mode/2up |page=88}}</ref>
* ''[[Hashimoto-san|Hashimoto]]'' (1959–1963)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/88/mode/2up |page=89}}</ref>
* ''[[Heckle and Jeckle]]'' (1946–1966)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/88/mode/2up |pages=89–90}}</ref>
* ''[[Hector Heathcote]]'' (1959–1971)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/90/mode/2up |pages=90–91}}</ref>
* ''James Hound'' (1966–1967)<ref name="archive.org">{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/96/mode/2up |page=96}}</ref>
* ''John Doormat'' (1957–1959)<ref name="archive.org"/>
* ''[[Kiko the Kangaroo]]'' (1936–1937)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/96/mode/2up |page=97}}</ref>
* ''Little Roquefort'' (1950–1955)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/100/mode/2up |page=100}}</ref>
* ''[[Luno the White Stallion]]'' (1963–1964)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/102/mode/2up |page=102}}</ref>
* ''Martian Moochers'' (1966)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/102/mode/2up |page=103}}</ref>
* ''[[Mighty Mouse]]'' (1942–1961)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/110/mode/2up |pages=110–111}}</ref>
* ''[[Nancy (comic strip)|Nancy]]'' (1942)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/112/mode/2up |page=113}}</ref>
* ''Possible Possum'' (1965–1971)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/126/mode/2up |pages=126–127}}</ref>
* ''[[Puddy the Pup]]'' (1935–1942)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/126/mode/2up |page=127}}</ref>
* ''[[Sad Cat]]'' (1965–1968)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/130/mode/2up |page=131}}</ref>
* ''Sidney the Elephant'' (1958–1963)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/134/mode/2up |page=135}}</ref>
* ''The Terry Bears'' (1951–1956)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/142/mode/2up |pages=142–143}}</ref>
{{colend}}

=== TV series ===
* ''[[Barker Bill's Cartoon Show]]'' (1953–1956)
* ''[[Mighty Mouse Playhouse]]'' (1955–1967)
* ''CBS Cartoon Theatre'' (1956)
* ''The Heckle and Jeckle Show'' (1956)
* ''[[Tom Terrific]]'' (1957)
* ''Easy Winners'' (1958) (unaired pilot)
* ''[[Deputy Dawg|The Deputy Dawg Show]]'' (1959–1964)
* ''[[The Adventures of Lariat Sam]]'' (1962)
* ''[[The Hector Heathcote Show]]'' (1963)
* ''[[The Astronut Show]]'' (1965)
* ''[[Mighty Mouse]], & [[The Mighty Heroes]]'' (1966–1967)
* ''Sally Sargent'' (1968) (pilot)

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0856056|name=Paul Terry}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150508225706/http://dfe.goldenagecartoons.com/terrytoons60s.htm Post Paul Terry era filmography]

{{Mighty Mouse}}
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[[Category:Terrytoons| ]]
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[[Category:Mass media companies established in 1929]]
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